Introduction to People, Organization Andmanagement Essay Example for Free

Introduction to People, Organization Andmanagement Essay 1. Key Information Module title: Introduction to People, Organisations and Management Module Leader: Hermione McIntosh Chelmsford/Michael Ashcroft Building/ Room MAB 301 Every module has a Module Definition Form (MDF) which is the officially validated record of the module. You can access the MDF for this module in three ways: * the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) * the My. Anglia Module Catalogue at www. anglia. ac. uk/modulecatalogue * Anglia Ruskin’s module search engine facility at www. anglia. ac. uk/modules All modules delivered by Anglia Ruskin University at its main campuses in the UK and at partner institutions throughout the UK and overseas are governed by the Academic Regulations. You can view these at www. anglia. ac. uk/academicregs. A printed extract of the Academic Regulations, known as the Assessment Regulations, is available for every student from your Faculty Office (all new students will have received a copy as part of their welcome pack). In the unlikely event of any discrepancy between the Academic Regulations and any other publication, including this module guide, the Academic Regulations, as the definitive document, take precedence over all other publications and will be applied in all cases. 2. Introduction to the Module This 30 credit module covers four key areas. The organisational context: This module allows students to explore the organisational context and will furnish students with tools to analyse the organisational environment and the degree of dynamism and complexity in which organisations operate. Students will be encouraged to examine organisational responses to environmental turbulence. The development and impact of organisational culture will also be assessed. Organisation structures and approaches to management: Students will analyse the changes to organisational structure and architecture and the evolution from self-contained structures to boundaryless organisations. Approaches to management from scientific management to postmodern organisations will be evaluated and the way groups and teams are formed and structured. Motivation will also be examined as a motivated workforce can be a sign of a successful organisation and students will be encouraged to reflect critically on theories of motivation and apply them to real life situations and case study scenarios. Management processes: Intensified competition, technological innovation and increased knowledge intensity has resulted in a pattern of ‘repeat change’. The results of change programmes are often disappointing and students will examine the triggers for change, why change is resisted and organisations’ approaches to change management. This module will also investigate the difference between leadership and management and critically evaluate classical and contemporary approaches to leadership theory and the role power and politics play in organisational life. Individuals in the organisation: This part of the module focuses on individual differences. The ability to learn, and to continue learning, for individuals and organisations, is crucial in the 21st century. Students will be introduced to a number of learning theories which affect management practices and will have an overview of the learning organisation. Students will examine the role that personality and perception play in shaping and directing our own and other people’s behaviour. The role of communication will also be investigated as communication affects organisation performance and also individual career prospects. Students will therefore be equipped with a robust intellectual framework for analysing and understanding the past, present and future influences on their own thinking, attitudes, values and behaviours and to reflect on how these might impact their effectiveness and performance in practice. Please also refer to Sections 6a and 6b of the MDF. 3. Intended Learning Outcomes. Anglia Ruskin modules are taught on the basis of intended learning outcomes and on successful completion of this module, you will be expected to be able to demonstrate that you have met these outcomes. On successful completion you will be able to: 1. Understand and critically evaluate the underlying principles and concepts of the nature of organisations. 2. Understand and appreciate the contribution of effective people management to the success of organisations. 3. Explore a range of theories developed to aid the understanding of learning and human behaviour, reflecting on their learning experiences and career development. 4. Examine the application of theories in real world organisational settings. 5. Apply a range of theories and concepts on organisational design, structure and management in the analysis of managing employees with specific reference to leadership, power, motivation and teamwork. 6. Use simple psychometric and related instruments for self-analysis and learning tools for goal-setting, problem-solving and personal reflective practice within a framework for personal and career development. 4. Outline Delivery. Wk| Lecture A People| Lecture B – Organisation Management| Reading (Buchanan and Huczynski, 2010)| 1| Introduction to Part A of the module. Individual behaviour and personality| Introduction to Part B of the module. What is an organisation? Introduction to organisational behaviour. Orientation to work and the work ethic.. | Chapters 1 and 6| 2| Personality theories in the workplace. | The organisation’s environment. Business ethics and corporate social responsibility. | Chapters 2, 3 and 6| 3| Perception. | Organisational culture and socialisation. | Chapters 4 and 8| 4| Attitudes and values. | Organisational structure and architecture. | Chapters 15 and 17; Brooks Chapter 3| 5| Learning as a process. The Behaviourist and Cognitive approaches. | Approaches to organisations and management. (1)| Chapters 5, 14 and16| 6| Learning in practice and the Learning Organisation| Approaches to organisations and management (2)| Chapters 5, 14 and 16,| 7| Motivation: content theories| Groups and teams at work. | Chapters 9, 10, 11, 12, 13| 8|. Motivation: process theories| Organisational change| Chapters 9 and 18| 9| Communication| Leadership (part 1)| Chapters 7 and 19| 10| Career management and choices| Leadership (part 2)| Chapter 19| 11| Reflective practice and managing self. | Power in organisations| Chapter 22| 12| Module review. | Module review| | 4. 1 Attendance Requirements Attending all your classes is very important and one of the best ways to help you succeed in this module. In accordance with the Student Charter, you are expected to arrive on time and take an active part in all your timetabled classes. If you are unable to attend a class for a valid reason (eg: illness), please contact your Module Tutors. Anglia Ruskin will closely monitor the attendance of all students and will contact you by e-mail if you have been absent without notice for two weeks. Continued absence can result in the termination of your registration as you will be considered to have withdrawn from your studies. International students who are non-EEA nationals and in possession of entry clearance/leave to remain as a student (student visa) are required to be in regular attendance at Anglia Ruskin. Failure to do so is considered to be a breach of national immigration regulations. Anglia Ruskin, like all British Universities, is statutorily obliged to inform the Border and Immigration Agency of the Home Office of significant unauthorised absences by any student visa holders. 5. Assessment This module will be assessed through two pieces of coursework which will allow you to evidence the demands of this module and meet the learning outcomes (see sections 7 and 9 of the MDF). Both pieces of coursework have a word limit of 3,000 words and have a 50% weighting. The assignment hand-in date is Tuesday, 8 May, 2012. All coursework assignments and other forms of assessment must be submitted by the published deadline which is detailed above. It is your responsibility to know when work is due to be submitted – ignorance of the deadline date will not be accepted as a reason for late or non-submission. All student work which contributes to the eventual outcome of the module (ie: if it determines whether you will pass or fail the module and counts towards the mark you achieve for the module) is submitted via the iCentre using the formal submission sheet . Academic staff CANNOT accept work directly from you. If you decide to submit your work to the iCentre by post, it must arrive by midday on the due date. If you elect to post your work, you do so at your own risk and you must ensure that sufficient time is provided for your work to arrive at the iCentre. Posting your work the day before a deadline, albeit by first class post, is extremely risky and not advised. Any late work (submitted in person or by post) will NOT be accepted and a mark of zero will be awarded for the assessment task in question. You are requested to keep a copy of your work. Feedback. You are entitled to written feedback on your performance for all your assessed work. For all assessment tasks which are not examinations, this is provided by a member of academic staff completing the assignment coversheet on which your mark and feedback will relate to the achievement of the module’s intended learning outcomes and the assessment criteria you were given for the task when it was first issued. Examination scripts are retained by Anglia Ruskin and are not returned to students. However, you are entitled to feedback on your performance in an examination and may request a meeting with the Module Leader or Tutor to see  your examination script and to discuss your performance. Anglia Ruskin is committed to providing you with feedback on all assessed work within 20 working days of the submission deadline or the date of an examination. This is extended to 30 days for feedback for a Major Project module (please note that working days excludes those days when Anglia Ruskin University is officially closed; eg: between Christmas and New Year). Personal tutors will offer to read feedback from several modules and help you to address any common themes that may be emerging. At the main Anglia Ruskin University campuses, each Faculty will publish details of the arrangement for the return of your assessed work (eg: a marked essay or case study etc. ). Any work which is not collected by you from the Faculty within this timeframe is returned to the iCentres from where you can subsequently collect it. The iCentres retain student work for a specified period prior to its disposal. To assure ourselves that our marking processes are comparable with other universities in the UK, Anglia Ruskin provides samples of student assessed work to external examiners as a routine part of our marking processes. External examiners are experienced academic staff from other universities who scrutinise your work and provide Anglia Ruskin academic staff with feedback and advice. Many of Anglia Ruskin’s staff act as external examiners at other universities. On occasion, you will receive feedback and marks for pieces of work that you completed in the earlier stages of the module. We provide you with this feedback as part of the learning experience and to help you prepare for other assessment tasks that you have still to complete. It is important to note that, in these cases, the marks for these pieces of work are unconfirmed as the processes described above for the use of external examiners will not have been completed. This means that, potentially, marks can change, in either direction! Marks for modules and individual pieces of work become confirmed on the Dates for the Official Publication of Results which can be checked at www. anglia. ac. uk/results. ASSIGNMENT ONE Module Title: Introduction to People, Organisations and Management Module Code:BB130020SLevel: 1 Academic Year: 2011/12Semester: Two Module Leader:Hermione McIntosh. Instructions:See below Word Limit: 3000 words % Weighting:50% Written assignments must not exceed the specified maximum number of words. Assignments will not be accepted without a word count on the cover sheet. Submission Date:Tuesday, May 8, 2012 Work submitted after this date will receive a mark of 0 unless an extension has been approved in advance of this deadline. Requests for short-term extensions will only be considered in the case of illness or other cause considered valid by the Student Adviser. These must normally be received and agreed by Student Adviser in writing at least twenty four hours prior to the deadline. Please refer to the Academic Regulations or your Student Handbook for full details. Further details:This assignment must be completed individually. This assignment must be attached to a completed University Assignment Cover Sheet and accompanied by a completed University Assignment Receipt before submission. Any attachments (such as computer discs) must be marked with your SID number(s) and securely attached to your assignment before submission. Do not submit your work in a plastic sleeve. TASK Read the two organisational case studies attached and provide a critical comparative analysis of them in academic report format. You should consider how the two organisations differ in the way they operate and in the way they are managed. In particular, you should focus on the following areas: * Organisational design and structure * Teams and teamworking * Approach to leadership and management * Organisational culture Your analysis must be supported by relevant theories and concepts that have been covered in the module and you must demonstrate that you have read widely around the subject area and used this reading to support the arguments you are making. Do not rely solely on the key text but use a range of academic texts and journal articles. Refer to the reading list in your module guide for further guidance. It is essential that you use the Harvard Referencing System and it is recommended that you download the University’s Guide to the Harvard Referencing System from the library website. Assessment weighting for written assignment The following assessment weighting is provided for guidance: Introduction| 10%| Analysis of issues including use of the literature to support arguments| 60%| Conclusion and recommendations| 20%| Presentation and structure of the report including written expression and referencing| 10%| Case Study One Case study 1: Biogenta plc. Biogenta is a world-leading business, producing crop-protection products (herbicides, fungicides and insecticides). It currently employs 15,000 employees in over 80 countries and has manufacturing facilities in 10 countries. It is organised into four major functional areas: Research and Development, Manufacturing, Sales and Marketing and, finally, Support (covering financial services, human resources and legal services). Jane Morgan, the Chief Executive Officer of Biogenta, is a strong role model for her staff and has developed a mission and a set of values based on extensive consultation with Biogenta’s stakeholders. Biogenta’s mission is to be the most trusted provider of crop-protection products in the world and their values include: Be adventurous, creative and open-minded Pursue growth and learning Be passionate and determined Build open and honest relationships Create fun These values have been embedded in the culture of the organisation. Jane is deeply respected and many of her staff have even called her inspirational. She is very motivational and communicates high expectations of all staff. Her aim has always been to empower her staff and to stimulate staff to be  creative and innovation so that they try novel approaches and develop ground-breaking new products. Biogenta is committed to innovation and sees this as a major strength. It has a strong focus on recruiting extremely able and highly motivated employees. It is also committed to investing heavily in their development. As well as recruiting highly educated staff, many of whom are educated to doctorate level, the company offers numerous in-house training courses covering both technical and personal development issues. As a global organisation Biogenta wants to recruit the brightest and the best from all over the world. In Cambridge, alone, one of its four research and development ‘hubs’, it employs people of 20 different nationalities. It offers generous support to employees who want to further their education and training by paying fees and giving time off to attend courses. It also offers generous perks, such as opportunities for sabbaticals or gap years and subsidising gym membership. Office environments and even factories are designed to be light, pleasant places to work, with the company sponsoring a large amount of art work and landscaping to enhance the environment. It is also a major sponsor of a number of exhibitions and museums around the world with a ‘biological science’ theme. Staff are encouraged to contribute to community work, and the company sponsors a number of projects working with schools in a number of countries on biological science projects. Although Biogenta has a traditional structure, as would be expected of an organisation of this size, Jane believes that structures, job titles and power can put barriers up between people and inhibit innovation and performance. She believes it is far more effective to put her faith in people and in teamwork and there is minimal hierarchy. Although almost all employees work in one of the four functional areas mentioned above, the organisation also promotes cross-functional working in project teams, some of which are virtual teams. Project working is seen as essential to achieving constant product improvement and innovation. These teams can be large or small, short term or fairly long in duration. It recognizes that getting people from different functions to work effectively together can be a challenge and it has a number of ways of trying to minimise these, including the use of technology. Many of the support staff have at least undergraduate degrees in science subjects. For example Jacqueline Baryomunsi works in the marketing team but she has a degree in Biology, although she was later sponsored by Biogenta to do an MBA. Although originally based in Cambridge, she was recently posted to a nine month international assignment in South Africa where she worked on a project to develop a new herbicide, working with a team of four others. This included Jonathan Etherington, who has a PhD in chemistry from the USA and has been working on production in one of Biogenta’s manufacturing bases in Italy until recently. The other team members included two people from Biogenta’s research and development function (both based in South Africa) and the team was led by Kathryn Tate, originally from Australia, who has a PhD in molecular biology and is based within Biogenta’s support function as an IT specialist. This project involved long working hours but Kathryn Tate also made sure the team had time for some fun: team members spent quite a lot of time together outside work, even, on one occasion managing to go shark-fishing as well as regularly sampling the night life of Durban. (This is a fictional case study.) Case Study Two OUTBACK INC. Setting Tourism is a strong contributor to Australia’s economy, with over a half million people employed in the sector, and tourism spending reaching over $85 billion a year. The country promotes its beautiful landscapes, Aboriginal art and cultures, coastal lifestyles and the outback as the main attractions for visitors. Australia’s top five international tourism markets are New Zealand, the UK, Japan, the USA and China. Visitor numbers from China and India have grown strongly, while the number of Japanese and Korean tourists has declined in the last few years. China is now Australia’s fifth largest international tourism market, brining it into second place with New Zealand, and this is set to grow over the next decade. However, Australia’s share of global tourism continues to drop, with a decrease of 14 per cent between 1995 and 2008. Since its peak in 2001, it has also declined as a proportion of Australia’s gross domestic product. The Australian tourism industry continues to struggle from the effects of a series of crises, starting with a pilot strikes in 1989 and the worldwide economic outfalls of the Iraq War and the SARS outbreak. More recently, after four strike free years at Qantas, there has been a bitter pay dispute which closed the airline down in October this year. Qantas passengers could face further delays and cancellations after one of the unions locked in a wage dispute threatened more strikes and legal action if the airline did not improve its pay offer. Skilled staff shortages are also contributing to Australia’s tourism industry troubles, with an estimated 42,000 employees needed by 2015. Outback Inc Established in the early 1990s, Outback is an adventure-based tour company located in Sydney, Australia. The company offers a variety of services, including guided tours, accommodation and meals, to those wishing to visit remote and regional areas of Australia. Outback’s comprehensive packages of services have traditionally appealed to travellers from all over the world, particularly visitors from Japan, who typically make up over 80 per cent of their client base, but its product offering has not been updated for a number of years. Profitability has now been on a downward trend for some time and there is no clear vision or detailed strategy to move the company forward. Despite increased marketing efforts aimed at the general Asian market, the company has seen a decrease in bookings from its traditionally reliable Japanese sector. The poor exchange rate has negatively affected tourist numbers from the U. K. and Outback has yet to attract new clients from China or other Asian countries experiencing more favourable economic conditions. Although Outback grew from a small, family-owned business in the early 1990s to a moderately sized company with sales of several million dollars a year, it still retains its original functional organisational structure. Its Chief Executive Officer is a son of the original founder and his autocratic style of leadership, although dressed up in paternalism, has meant that he is not prepared to listen to staff members, particularly those at the lower end of the hierarchy. Outback’s managers, typically members of the company’s founding family, head up the various departments, which are structured around traditional functions such as marketing, finance and human resources. In order to satisfy the needs of family members, there are a number of hierarchical levels within the organisation which often negatively affects the organisation. There is limited teamwork and virtually no cross-functional working with each of the functions operating in a silo. At times this has resulted in a poor service to clients where their expectations have not been met, and the company has recently received some bad press in the Asian tourist magazines and newspapers. Although this is an adventure-based tour company, it is not a fun place to work and the culture and leadership style stifle creativity. As with most organisations in the hospitality field, the Outback management uses a traditional leadership style, with decisions made at the top levels of management and communicated downwards. The majority of Outback’s employees are young, highly motivated and eager for learning opportunities, but the company struggles to regain them, facing a turnover rate higher than even what is expected in an industry with a notorious turnover culture. Although the company does have its own website, management has been hesitant to move away from using standard travel agencies for their client booking purposes, which is relatively costly. Many of the younger staff have ideas on how to improve the product range, the service offered to clients and how to target the all important Asian market, but have given up voicing their ideas as these have not been listened to in the past and they are concerned about being blamed for the rise in client complaints. (This is a fictional case study which has been adapted from Bratton et al. , 2010) Specific assessment criteria for assignment one 70% + Extensive knowledge and understanding surrounding organisations and management is evident. A deep level of critical analysis has been provided throughout with coherent and convincing arguments made. Theory and practice (case studies) have been integrated convincingly. Analysis is supported by extensive reading (academic texts and journal articles). Conclusion is convincing, relevant and holistic. Written expression and referencing are excellent resulting in a credible assignment which is well-structured, concise and demonstrates clarity of thought. 60 – 69% Good knowledge and understanding surrounding organisations and management is evident. A good level of critical analysis is demonstrated and arguments are clear and structured. Theory and practice (case studies) have been integrated well. Analysis is supported by significant background reading (academic texts and journals). Conclusion summarises the key issues convincingly. Good referencing with consistent citation and listing. Written expression is good resulting in an assignment which is well-structured, clear and concise. 50 – 59% Sound knowledge and understanding surrounding organisations and management is evident. Generally good analysis is demonstrated and arguments are clear and structured. Theory and practice (case studies) have been integrated. Analysis is supported by background reading (academic texts). A satisfactory conclusion is included. An appropriate structure is used and style of writing is satisfactory. Referencing is to satisfactory standard. 40 – 49% Some knowledge and understanding surrounding organisations and management is evident. The assignment is more descriptive than analytical, but arguments are sufficiently identifiable and free of obvious contradiction. Limited integration of theory and practice (case studies). Limited background reading from academic sources to support the work. Conclusion is drawn, but not all key issues are included. The assignment is adequately referenced with an appropriate structure. Written expression is satisfactory, but there are weaknesses in the presentation. Fail – 39% and below Very limited knowledge and understanding surrounding organisations and management is evident. The assignment is very descriptive with poor application of relevant theories, concepts and models. Minimal evidence of further reading. No or limited conclusion. The report is weakly referenced and the structure is inadequate. Written expression is poor resulting in an assignment which lacks clarity. Overall the task is poorly presented and argued and does not achieve an adequate standard. ASSIGNMENT TWO Module Title: Introduction to People, Organisations and Management Module Code:BB130020SLevel: 1 Academic Year: 2011/12Semester: Two Module Leader:Hermione McIntosh Instructions:Answer all four questions Word Limit: 3000 words % Weighting:50% Written assignments must not exceed the specified maximum number of words. Assignments will not be accepted without a word count on the cover sheet. Submission Date:Tuesday, May 8, 2012 Work submitted after this date will receive a mark of 0 unless an extension has been approved in advance of this deadline. Requests for short-term extensions will only be considered in the case of illness or other cause considered valid by the Student Adviser. These must normally be received and agreed by Student Adviser in writing at least twenty four hours prior to the deadline. Please refer to the Academic Regulations or your Student Handbook for full details. Further details:This assignment must be completed individually. This assignment must be attached to a completed University Assignment Cover Sheet and accompanied by a completed University Assignment Receipt before submission. Any attachments (such as computer discs) must be marked with your SID number(s) and securely attached to your assignment before submission. Do not submit your work in a plastic sleeve. Complete ALL four of the following tasks. 1. What is personality? And what relevance has this concept to understanding behaviour in the workplace? 2. â€Å"Learning is the process of acquiring knowledge through experience which leads to an enduring change in behaviour. † (Huczynski Buchanan, 2010, p. 732) Explain this statement, showing how it relates to a learning theory that you have studied on this module and to your own approach to learning. 3. One way to understand different motivation theories is to interview your peers on what is important to them when choosing a job. Form a diverse study group, and discuss the following: How important is pay in choosing a job when you graduate? Is personal autonomy important in your work motivation? Explain your findings and discuss them in relation to appropriate motivation theory. 4. Choose FOUR barriers to communication and suggest, as a manager, how you might overcome such barriers. Within the 3,000 overall word limit, you should allocate words equally to each of the 4 tasks above. You should also illustrate your answer by referring to relevant literature, theory and experience. Each question is equally weighted in terms of the assessment marking. Specific Assessment Criteria for these written tasks: 70% + Extensive knowledge and understanding of the literature is evident. A considerable depth of application has been achieved with the literature and examples of practice. A high level of insight and thought is evident throughout the arguments made and the findings presented. Analysis is supported by extensive reading. Written expression and referencing are excellent; ideas are well structured, balanced, and succinct and demonstrate clarity of thought. 60-69% A good grasp of knowledge and understanding of the literature is evident. A very good depth of application has been achieved with the literature and examples of practice. A significant level of insight and thought is evident throughout the arguments made and the findings presented. Analysis is supported by good background reading. Written expression is of a very good standard and referencing is strong with consistent citation and listing. The ideas are well structured, balanced, and clear and concise 50-59% Sound knowledge and understanding of the literature is evident. Generally good application has been achieved with the literature and examples of practice. There is evidence of insight and thought throughout the arguments made and the findings presented. Analysis is supported by background reading. Written expression and referencing is of a satisfactory standard. The ideas are fairly well structured, and clear and concise. 40-49% Some knowledge and understanding of the literature is evident. Generally the work is more descriptive than applied. Limited evidence of insight and thought throughout the arguments made and the findings presented. Analysis is limited, and not all the key issues are addressed. Written expression and referencing is of a satisfactory standard, but there are weaknesses in the presentation. Fail 30-39% Very limited knowledge and understanding of the literature is evident. The work is very descriptive with poor application of relevant theories and concepts. Minimal evidence of insight, thought and analysis. Written expression is poor resulting in writing which lacks clarity. Poor presentation overall, and does not achieve an adequate standard. 6. Assessment Criteria and Marking Standards ANGLIA RUSKIN UNIVERSITY GENERIC ASSESSMENT CRITERIA AND MARKING STANDARDS LEVEL 1 GenericLearning Outcomes(Academic Regulations, Section 2)| Assessment criteria by level| Marking standards (by mark band)| | | 70%+| 60-69%| 50-59%| 40-49%| 30-39%| 1-29%|. | Characteristics of student achievement per mark band | Achieves module outcome/s related to this GLO at this Level of Study| Achieves module outcome/s related to this GLO at this Level of Study| Achieves module outcome/s related to this GLO at this Level of Study | Achieves a marginal pass in the module outcome/s related to this GLO at this Level of Study| Fails marginally to achieve module outcome/s related to this GLO. MDF may permit compensation | Fails to achieve module outcome/s related to this GLO and is not eligible for compensation | Knowledge and Understanding | Level 1 (FHEQ level 4) intr.

Cost Leadership Business Strategy

Cost Leadership Business Strategy Cost leadership is a business strategy developed by Michael Porter. It helps the organization create competitive advantage. Cost leadership refers to provide lowest cost of operation in the industry and it is different from price leadership. Its often driven by organization efficiency, size, scale, scope, technology and experience. A cost leadership strategy use to exploit scale of production, producing highly standardized products by using high technology. An organization could be the lowest cost producer, but not offer the lowest-priced products or services to customer. Therefore the organization would have a higher than average profitability. However, cost leader organization will compete on price and are very effective at such a form of competition, having a low cost structure and management.   The organizations can increase the market share by appealing price-sensitive customers. This is achieved by having the lowest prices in the target market segment to appealing price-sensitive customer while the organization still profitability and a high return on investment. The organization must be able to operate at a lower cost than its rivals. Organization can achieves this by achieving a high asset turnover, low direct and indirect operating costs, and control over the supply/procurement chain to ensure low costs. The company choose are London Biscuits Berhad Group, Oriental Food Industries Sdn Bhd and Apollo Food Industries Sdn Bhd. London Biscuits Berhad Group is a manufacturing and marketing cakes and snack food which score high in terms of product safety and quality based in Malaysia. It is listed in the main market of Bursa Malaysia. The reason our group chosen this company is in the annual report 2010 the company outlook and prospect mention about the cost effective. Besides, the company strategy for go also show they march toward cost leadership. It relate to assignment topic which is compete on a cost leadership strategy. Oriental Food Industries Sdn Bhd is the food manufacturing industry, today holding the leading position in the snack food and confectionery industry in Malaysia. It also listed in the main market of Bursa Malaysia. One of the aim for research and development team is to reduce cost and wastage while increasing productivity and maintaining standards. This strategy shows the company trying to achieve cost leadership. Apollo Food Industries Sdn Bhd is the manufacturing compound chocolate confectionery products and layer cakes based in Malaysia. The company also listed in the main market of Bursa Malaysia. One of the company strategies is implementing and maintains the quality management system and continually improves its effectiveness. This strategy shows the company is towards to cost leadership. Body London Biscuits Berhad The first company is London Biscuits Berhad. From annual report, they mention that the company is toward cost efficiency by few strategies. The first and foremost, London Biscuits Berhad have implement the low cost in the main raw material. The company bought Lay Hong Berhad to assure has a continuous and adequate supply of quality liquid eggs at reasonable price. Liquid egg is one of the main raw materials in manufacturing of cake product. After, the company have take up a controlling stake in TPC PLUS BERHAD( TPC) at a reasonably cheap entry cost. TPC is a company also listed in the main market of Bursa Malaysia, mainly involved in producing chicken eggs for industry, commercial and consumer use. TPC is also a supplier of London Biscuit Berhad. The action help the company have own supplier of egg with assured quality and cost-effective to the company. The second strategy they implement is mass production, it can help the company to reduce the average cost. The reason is that, mass production can reduce the wastage in raw material as well as achieve cost-effective at long range perspective. In the annual report, they mention they are commissioning of new cake production line which to be the single biggest production line in South East Asia. The line wills more than double of the company existing production capacity. The third strategy implement is upgrade technology to improve production efficiencies, reduce wastage and reduce manpower requirement. In annual report, the company mention about older machines and facilities in snack manufacturing division are upgrading to custom design and built machines. For long term, this will help the company save production cost and lead to cost leadership in the industry. The last strategy implement is directors training. In annual report, the company mentions certain directors have attended training and seminar whether in-house or external in various areas to enhance their skills to contribute more effectively to the company. This action will help the company running with more efficiency, implement useful strategy and reduce the mistake in decision making by director. Oriental Food Industries Sdn Bhd The Second Company is Oriental Food Industries Sdn Bhd. From the annual report, the groups pre-tax profit grew faster at 37.5%. Its driven principally by a better sales mix as well as a more efficient cost structure. From the statement, we can know the company is a cost leadership company. The first strategy the company use to achieve cost leadership is directors training, it can find in the group annual reports. This will improve the ability and efficiency of the director in making decision. This will reduce the wrong decision making, indirect reduce the loss in making a wrong decision. Besides, in the annual report mention the company provide on-job-training and external courses for relevant departments to ensure the sufficiently skilled to perform effectively and efficiently. This strategy can help the company reduce the manpower require and save cost pay for Over Time. The second strategy implement is reducing cost and wastage and increasing productivity. From the company websites, the RD team engages in various research methods in order to improve the production process to achieve the strategy. This will lead the company to cost leadership. The third strategy implement is technology. From the company website, they mention the company abreast with the latest technology developments. The company produces the products with modern machinery for increase the productivity and efficiency to achieve economic of scale. It also can help the company reduce the manpower using. The forth strategy implement is the relationship with suppliers and customer. In the annual report, the company mentions Mr. Son Chen Chuan as a Managing Director in the company, he had close relationship with the supplier and customer. With the relationship with supplier they can get the material with quality and lower price. This will reduce the cost for the company. Apollo Food Industries Sdn Bhd The third company is Apollo Food Industries Sdn Bhd. From the annual report, all the director have completed the Mandatory Accreditation Programmed (MAP). The aim of this training is to enhance their skills and knowledge. It can help the directors in decision making to reduce the error and risk. When wrong decision making, the risk and cost for the company is high, it can help the company save cost. The second strategy implement is training provide to employee. From the annual report, the company mention the employees are provided with necessary training in various job related organized by external parties to enhance the skill and knowledge. This will help the company reduce the manpower and pay for Over Time. The third strategy implement is reducing wastage. From the annual report, the company mention operation and office resources are been utilized without much wastage and recycling are being encourage at all time. This strategy will save the cost for the company and lead the company towards cost leadership. The forth strategy implement is continuous improve in production planning. From the annual report, the company invests on newer and modern production machineries to increase the production and reduce the cost. These companies have implemented several similar strategies such as mass production, upgrade the technology and director and employee training. These strategies will help the companies to achieve economic of scale, reduce the manpower and other expenses in order to achieve cost leadership in the industry. Besides, these companies also have implement different strategies to leads the industry. The London Biscuits buying their supplier to reduce the raw material cost and insure the quality of raw material. This strategy not implement by the two companies, it become superiority for London Biscuit Berhad. The Oriental Food Industries Sdn Bhd implement different strategies but the same aim is to get the material at reasonable price. This company achieves this by having a good relationship with the supplier to increase the bargaining power to supplier. 3.0 Conclusion The three companies uses to research are from the same industries that compete with each other in the same market. These three companies use their cost leadership strategies in the confection industry in order to reduce the cost and keep their price low to compete with others and increase the market share to survive. Most of the strategy are similar but implement in different ways to achieve cost leadership strategies. Besides, there are some different strategies use are different from others. These help company have superiority when compete with other.

Babe Ruth :: essays research papers

Babe Ruth Date Born: February 6, 1895  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Place: Baltimore, Maryland Date Died: August 16, 1948  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Place: New York, New York Early Family Background:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  George Herman Ruth Jr., aka Babe Ruth had eight other brothers and sisters, but only him and his sister Mamie survived. His parents names were Kate and George Herman Ruth. Ruth’s father was a bartender and his mother helped at their tavern. Ruth’s parents made no time for him so they sent him to St. Mary’s Industrial School for Boys. Adult Life:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Helen Woodford: married on October 17, 1914 in Ellicott City, Maryland. In 1921, they adopted a little girl named Dorothy. Jan 11, 1929, Helen died in a fire of suffocation. About 3 months later, on April 17, 1929, Babe married Claire Hodgson in New York. In 1930, Babe adopted Claire’s daughter Julia & Claire adopted Babe’s daughter Dorothy. Significant Accomplishments:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Babe’s record of 714 homers was only beaten by Hank Aaron in 1974. In 1932, Ruth did his famous â€Å"called shot,† where he pointed to the centerfield bleachers and hit his homerun in that same direction. When the Babe was with the Yankees they won a total of 7 pennants and 4 world championships from 1920 – 1933. Feb 2, 1936 Babe became Charter member of Baseball Hall of Fame. Other Points of Interest:   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  *Babe Ruth got his name from when his new legal guardian Jack Dunn brought him to see the players, they said â€Å"Here’s Jack’s newest Babe!† The name stuck so throughout his life he was called Babe Ruth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  *Babe retired from baseball on June 2, 1935 from the Boston Braves *In 1946, Babe was diagnosed with throat cancer and he died on August 16, 1948.

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury :: essays research papers

The Book I read was called Fahrenheit 451. Written by Ray Bradbury. Fahrenheit 451 took place in the 24th century. It was about a society that frowned on curiosity and outlawed books. The story focuses around a man named Guy Montage, A man who burns books for a living. The book talks about Guy and his enlightenment towards books and how he discovers himself in the process. There were 5 main character in this book. The main character in the story was Guy Montage, a fireman/pyromaniac. The firemen in this story were actually people who started fires In order to prevent people from reading books. Guy enjoyed his job A little to much he became obsessed with it. Guy had a wife named Millie; She was a pill popping suicidal snob who was obsessed with material things. Guy had a boss named Captain Beaty, A representation of everything that is wrong with society and who encourages Guy to set fires. The person who encourages Guy to experience life is a teenager named Clarisse. The man who eventually acts as a mentor to Guy is a retired English Professor named Faber. The theme of the story is to not let society completely engulf you. I think that bradbury wanted us to read this story and Think to ourselves could this happen to us? I Think That all of Bradburys books are all similar in that they all try to make us think what could and might happen. The way things are going I Think the complete opposite will happen, less and less censorship. Although Both will lead to the same outcome of people being Miserable and sad. Bradbury has a very unique writing style. He writes stories that are totally unbelievable and yet makes them believable. I think that what I enjoy most about reading his books is his way of describing things so sharply and precise that it makes you feel like your in the story. I think that his books scare me a little, In that he writes them so real that I sometimes believe that the stories could happen in actual life.

strenght of relational model :: essays research papers

Introduction The first database systems were based on the network and hierarchical models. A database can be defined as a collection of non-redundant data which can be shared by different application systems. A database implies separation of physical storage from use of the data by an application program to achieve program/data independence. Using a database system, the user or programmer or application specialist need not know the details of how the data are stored and such details are usually "transparent" to the user. . These are covered briefly in appendices in the text. The relational model was first proposed by E.F. Codd in 1970 and the first such systems were developed in 1970s. The relational model is now the dominant model for commercial data processing applications. The relational model can be used in both conceptual and logical database design. The basic structure in the model is a table .Tables consists of rows and columns. Relationships in the relational model are represented implicitly through common attributes between different relations. The relational model consist of a relational structure, a set of integrity rules, and data manipulation operations. The relational structure is based on the representation of data in the form of tables. A table contains rows and columns, with each row representing an individual record, and each column representing a field for each record. Tables are related via indirect indexes of primary and foreign keys. The operations that are performed on these tables in order to store, manipulate and access this data include union, intersection, join, division, restriction, projection, assignment, difference, and product. How do you know if the relational model best fits your intended application? An application that requires on-line transaction processing (OLTP) where multiple files are updated simultaneously could benefit from the table structure of the relational model. The relational model provides the ability to quickly insert data into tables. However, when it comes to querying--getting data out of the database--the relational model can be slower because it doesn’t support direct access in multiple joins that are possible with the network model. An RDBMS-based application requires the traversal of indexes to get at related data in other files and this requires additional disk accesses and CPU cycles. The more tables involved and the greater the volume of records in these tables the more time is spent in accessing disk storage to get a result set. But while the relational model has the power to meet heavy-duty OLTP needs--get data into the database--it is also an excellent choice for simpl e databases and for an inexperienced database designer.

Facebook Games Essay

Facebook is a worldwide social network in which people all around the world socialize with one another. Not only do people log on to Facebook to tell all of their business they also log on to play the free online social games and playing games on Facebook can be addictive. In other words, people sit up all night playing these games and those that have no jobs sit up all day playing them. They somehow forget that there is a real world and that they are a part of the real world. One must remember that games are just animation and a figment of ones imagination and that real life is real life. Although Facebook has hundreds of games to play over one million people log on every day to play them. However, just to name a few, the most popular games played on Facebook are Cityville, Castleville, Chefville, and Farmville 2. These games are also associated with a web site called Zynga. com. Zynga. com allows players to play with people all over the world. For instance, Cityville is a game that lets the players create and run their own city. Players have to build their city from the ground up. They have to plan where they want to build their houses, put down their streets, where they want to build their businesses, parks, public works, and their schools. The players can collect rent, shop, and visit their online friends and have their friends visit them. In addition to completing the building process of their businesses, they have to ask their friends to work in them and they have to accept. Next is castleville, although castleville is a little similar to Cityville it involves players building their own kingdom from the ground up. Players have to build their castle and expand their kingdom by building cottages, barracks, and all the royal buildings. Players can also expand their kingdom by harvesting crops, tending to animals, cooking foods and crafting materials. Again, players have to collect rent and have their online friends to come work in their royal buildings in order for the building process to be completed. Opposite to Cityville and Castleville, players also log on to play Chefville a game where players can run their own restaurant. This game also consists of players having their online friends to come and help them. They might need their friends to help them build their kitchen appliances or help them finish cooking their foods their friends can also come in their restaurant and taste their foods that one has prepared or help them gather some items that they may need to prepare their foods. Players are to decorate their restaurants, buy and build cooking appliances, pick out styles for their tables and floors. Players can expand and design their restaurant any style of their choice. For example, their style can be Mexican, Italian, Country, or any of the other styles that they prefer. Chefville allow players to cook dishes using real live recipes and give players the opportunity to share their own recipes. Finally, you have the game Farmville 2, in this game players create their own farm where players can harvest crops, and plant fruit trees by fertilizing and watering them in a time sequence. In other words if the crops and trees are not watered at a certain time they will wither, and at this point the player can ask their online friends to visit them to fertilize their crops. Players can buy and raise farm animals such as chickens, cows, goats, rabbits, horses, and sheep. These animals produce the products that players may need for crafting, products such as eggs milk, horseshoes, and fur. However if one may need to cook a country feast or craft a wool blanket their farm will provide them with whatever they may need. To sum it all up, Facebook and Zynga. com allow millions of people to live their dreams all on a social network, but yet taking them out of reality to do that. Although it is ok to play games on Facebook but one must not let it take them from what is real and that is life. Whether they are playing cityville, castleville, chefville, or farmville2 players need to set a limit on how much time spent on playing games.

Aquatic Biomes and Tropical Rainforest Essay

An aquatic biome is an ecological community dominated by water. This biome can be broken down into two categories: oFreshwater, which includes rivers, streams, ponds, lakes and freshwater wetland. oMarine or saltwater, which includes oceans, seas, estuaries, coral reefs and saltwater wetland. Each of these aquatic ecosystems can be defined by variables such as temperature, the presence or absence of light, and the availability of nutrients. Aquatic biomes cover almost all the world (around 75% of the surface) and only 3% of them are freshwaters. Freshwater ecosystems This ecosystem is defined as having a low salt concentration of less than 1%. It helps to make up all the different animals’ life in this planet. Ponds and lakes range in size from few yards to thousands miles across, and they are divided into the littoral zone, limnetic zone and the profundal zone. The littoral zone is the part of the lake or pond which is shallow and located near the shoreline. In this zone there is abundant light, nutrients and plants. Those plants provide protection and food for animals, insects and crustaceans. The limnetic zone is offshore, where the water is deep and it receives enough sunlight to support life. There are tiny forms of life called as phytoplankton, which are tiny plant forms, and zooplankton, which are tiny animal forms. Those tiny forms of life lead to bigger animals’ life such as fish, which feed from those planktons. The profundal zone is beneath the limnetic zone, where it doesn’t receive light to sustain plants’ life. The organisms that die from above this zone settle down and are being eaten by decomposers. Because ponds and lakes are isolated from other bodies of water, they don’t have new species of animals or plant, or it is limited. Streams and rivers are defined by the flow of water in one direction. The source of these regions can be the snowmelt from the mountains, runoff of rains, or the outflows of a lake. They flow until they empty into another body of water and they usually lead ultimately to oceans. The flow of water of streams and rivers changes as it moves. At high elevations (mountains), the water’s flow moves swiftly and makes them clear and oxygenated. As it moves slower, it allows a more diversity of plants and animals. Because the water’s flow moves slowly, it carries more sediment and there is less oxygen in the water. Wetlands are standing water’s regions that support aquatic life. Wetlands can receive many names such as swamps, marshes and bogs. Marine or saltwater This ecosystem is defined by its high salt concentration. Oceans are the large aquatic ecosystem that dominates the Earth’s surface. It is divided into four zones: the intertidal zone, the pelagic zone, the benthic zone and the abyssal zone. The intertidal zone is the area that is covered and uncovered with the rising and falling of tides. Because of this, the communities are constantly changing and most of the living organisms live only where the high tides reach. The pelagic zone is the area away from the lands, which is the open ocean. This zone receives little sunlight and it has abundant plankton, which feed animals such as whales. In this zone, there are still some plants anchored to the bottom of the shore. The benthic zone is beneath the pelagic zone and it doesn’t receive sunlight, which makes it darker and colder. The abyssal zone is the deepest area beneath the benthic zone. This area is very cold, it has a great pressure, but it has a low nutrient level. Coral reefs are abundant in tropical water and it consists of a barrier of corals, anemones, and algae. The sunlight penetrates this area, which makes the water clearer and allows a diversity of living organisms. Estuaries are those areas in which freshwater merge with the ocean. This supports animals such as oysters, worms, and crabs; and supports plants such as algae and seaweeds. Tropical Rainforest Biome This is the most diverse terrestrial biome on Earth. It has a warm and moist environment and is dominated by broadleaf evergreen trees. The combination of constant warmth and moisture makes the tropical rainforest a great environment for many plants and animals, which made this biome as the only one that contains the greatest biodiversity in the world. Because of the great quantity of trees in this biome, the soil is infertile and acidic. This is because when an organism decomposes in the soil, the plants absorb it quickly for their quick grow and survival. This biome has several layers of vegetation. The tallest trees reach approximately 50 meters; below them there is a continuous canopy of treetop of approximately 40 meters. And the lower level is composed by small plants, mosses, and fungi. Most of the fauna in this biome is arboreal because the food near the ground is scarce.